Deters: Monkey at center of animal cruelty case completed drug rehab and is now 'thriving'

Kevin Grasha, Cincinnati Enquirer
·2 min read
5

A man facing a felony animal cruelty charge involving his capuchin monkey will have to wait until May 25 for a judge to hear his request to have the monkey returned.

Adam Kordes, of Westwood, was in Hamilton County Common Pleas Judge Christian Jenkins' courtroom for a hearing Thursday morning, but it was rescheduled. The reason was not clear, although attorneys indicated there was some kind of misunderstanding.

Kordes was arraigned Thursday on a charge of cruelty to a companion animal, a low-level felony punishable by up to a year in prison. He also faces a charge of illegally possessing a gun, after authorities found a shotgun in his apartment.

Kordes, 34, is not allowed to possess a weapon because he was deemed incompetent to stand trial several years ago in a vehicular homicide case. He was involved in a 2017 crash that killed a passenger, and according to his attorney can't recall the crash.

More: Animal intakes are up 40% in Hamilton County. Why are we seeing more strays, cruelty?

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Kordes' attorney has filed a motion to have his monkey "Neo" returned to him.

The monkey, worth as much as $20,000, was seized in February by officers with Cincinnati Animal Care, the organization that provides animal control services to the county.

In early February, the organization received a tip from a veterinarian in Florida who alleged Neo had been given illegal drugs. When officers went to Kordes' apartment, they found Neo severely malnourished, Hamilton County Prosecutor Joe Deters said Monday at a news conference.

Neo, a capuchin monkey, on the day he was seized from his owner's Westwood apartment in February 2022. Photo provided by Hamilton County Prosecutor Joe Deters' office.
Neo, a capuchin monkey, on the day he was seized from his owner's Westwood apartment in February 2022. Photo provided by Hamilton County Prosecutor Joe Deters' office.

Blood tests conducted on Neo confirmed the presence of amphetamines.

Kordes' attorney, Lisa Rabanus, said Neo had gotten into chocolate. Kordes then reached out to others for help, she said. The veterinarian in Florida saw video of Neo and believed the monkey was in danger.

After Neo was removed from Kordes, Deters said the monkey "went into rehab" in Indiana for a month. Neo got better, Deters said, and was transferred to a Florida facility where he is now "thriving" with other capuchin monkeys.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Deters: Monkey in animal cruelty case completed rehab, now 'thriving'